Issues
by Because I Can and Will
Summary: Murdock is sick of BA treating him like a child, and they get into a fight. Murdock is sent back to the VA afterward because of it. It's up to Hannibal to pull his team back together and resolve all their issues.


Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Story- Issues

Summery- Murdock is sick of BA treating him like a child, and they get into a fight. Murdock is sent back to the VA afterward because of it. It's up to Hannibal to pull his team back together and resolve all their issues.

~Murdock's POV~

The teams had just gotten back from a tough mission and were all exhausted. The hot desert heat wasn't helping their nerves any either. Face was laying back in his favorite chair sun tanning. Hannibal had gone off to inform Morrison of the mission stats, and BA went to check out his van. Murdock was bored and was aimlessly pacing around the tent area. He was kicking up dirt, sand, and rocks while watching some of the other soldiers wander around. Some stared at him as they passed, but most kept their distance, afraid of what the 'crazy' man might do. Quite frankly, they all treated him like a five year old who couldn't even think for himself. It pissed him off and, pardon the pun, was driving him insane. He knew his mental state was a little tipsy, but not that much. His team wasn't even much better. They didn't treat him like an adult, but more like a child. It made him feel a little put out. They would all joke around and laugh together, but then they explained it to him, like he didn't understand, even when he laughed along with them.

He noticed BA coming toward the tent. As BA neared he called to him "Hey, crazy fool, maybe we have some toy dump trucks in the tent you can play in the sand with." BA and Face burst out into laughter, and Murdock rolled his eyes. He gave them a sarcastic smile.

Face looked at him and started to explain what BA meant to him, which he already knew, in a tone similar to one used when speaking with a child. "Murdock, what BA means is…."

"No, man don't tell him. I doubt he would understand anyway." BA interrupted and they both burst into laughter.

He didn't see what was so funny, but he knew why they were laughing. He was really getting pissed now. "Maybe I would." He replied flatly. They both stopped and looked at him. He crossed his arms and met their gaze with his own piercing one. They both seemed to shrink back a bit.

"Murdock, you know that were just kidding right buddy." Face asked looking slightly sorry. He stared at him for a moment longer and looked at BA.

BA looked at Face oddly. "Maybe you were, but I wasn't. Crazy fool ain't right in the head. Probably don't even know what we're talking about." BA was looking at him now smiling. He wanted nothing more than to wipe that smile off his face.

"I'm not stupid BA, and I'm certainly not a child!" He was starting to yell and the glare he was giving BA was having an effect. "I can think for myself and I do understand what you talk about! It's not that hard to figure out and most of the time you spew more pointless shit than me!" A crowd was gathering around and his voice was rising. Hannibal was pushing his way through the crowd to try to see what was going on. "I'm not five, I'm thirty-seven and by now I think I can decide what I want. So stop treating me like a fucking little kid because I'm sick of it. It's fucking annoy…" He was suddenly seized and froze instantly shutting his eyes. The two soldiers that grabbed him forced his hands behind his back and pushed him forward. Opening his eyes he noticed Face's look of surprise and how he was beginning to stand. BA stood stock still. They continued pushing him and he went willingly knowing he was in serious trouble.

~Hannibal's POV~

It had been a few hours since Murdock was taken away. Hannibal was told that he was shipped to the nearest VA hospital about three hours away. Apparently some of the psychologists there believed that he had started having a psychotic break and brought him in for emergency treatment. He was kind of worried for him. They were all called to Morrison's office for a meeting to discuss what had happened. Hannibal had milked the story out of Face and BA shortly after Murdock was taken.

(A few hours earlier.)

"You two are telling exactly what happened, now! That's an order!" Hannibal barked at his remaining two men. They both flinched under his stare. He was glad that he had moved them into his tent because it would be embarrassing to have any more publicity circulating about his team.

Face cracked first. "Well BA and I were picking on him and he apparently didn't like it." He looked at guilty and was nervously wringing his hands. "I was only joking though. I swear I didn't mean it."

"Hannibal, you know how the crazy fool is, he's like a child. Doesn't understand the things he does." BA sounded like he was trying to prove his point.

His glare could have burned holes in lesser men but BA stood strong. "Well, because of your stunt Murdock was sent back the nearest VA hospital, for some emergency treatment." They both took on a look of alarm and became alert.

"Is he okay? Where did they take him?" Face seemed to be in a fully fledged panic. He had stood up and was leaning over the table toward Hannibal.

"I don't know the answer to either of those questions, but you two better hope he's alright." Hannibal pounded his fist on the table and exited the tent.

(Back to the present)

Morrison was eyeing them all. He had had them sit down and told them they had to have an important discussion. "Alright, first off I want to know what happened and why I have this mess on my hands." Morrison stated dryly.

Hannibal looked at Face and BA and was planning on making them give the explanation, because it was their fault. "Well sir, we were picking on Murdock and went too far. He was really upset and I tried to apologize but BA made it worse." Leave it to Face to always shift the blame to someone else.

BA looked a tad put out but quickly gave his side of the story. "I started it yes, but the crazy fool, is just that, a crazy fool. He was yelling about how bad we treat him, but he sure acts like a five year old so therefore should be treated like one." BA sat back and crossed his arms unwilling to relent just yet.

"Murdock has come a long way over the years and you shouldn't criticize him. I've seen men go through what he has and never recover. Some even commit suicide corporal. So I don't want to hear you say that he deserves to be treated like less of a person." Morrison was visibly fuming now. He put his head in his hands. "Hannibal, I expected you to have better control of your team. I thought you could handle this, but apparently you can't. So I'm sending you to the hospital to get Murdock and I expect you to take control over this and foresee that all your issues are resolved. I will give you this order. It has the directions to the hospital on it, and it looks like you all will be driving there." Hannibal had hung his but picked it up and took the paper Morrison gave him. "The military order will override anything the psychologists have to say and so they shouldn't be able to give any trouble. I expect you all to resolve your issues as soon as possible! Dismissed!" Morrison had yelled at them and they all saluted and practically ran out of the tent.

Hannibal gave BA and Face a half hour to get everything ready and then told them to meet back at the van. BA was going to have to drive them to get there and it was a three hour ride one way so Hannibal wanted to make sure they brought enough supplies. He also instructed Face to get Murdock a few things, like his favorite hat and some of his favorite snacks. Face had agreed to get them for him and also a few other things. Hannibal had gotten himself a few beers and some food. He had studied the directions and was sure that the trip wouldn't be that bad. It looked like a fairly simple trip without many turns. However time was ticking and they had taken Murdock almost six hours ago. It had taken time for Morrison to clear everything with them, and the meeting they had with him seemed brief, but actually took much more time that Hannibal could have expected. They really did need to get going.

Face and BA had gotten back to the van a little late which only ticked Hannibal off more. He had wanted to yell at them but decided to do that after they got moving so that they weren't further delayed. The ride there had been quiet after he had yelled at them and he could see how guilty they looked. He settled for watching the scenery pass by, which was really only a few rock and some cactuses, nothing very interesting. The ride had taken longer than Hannibal had anticipated. First, they made a wrong turn and had to turn around to get back on track. Then the van had broke down and BA had to fix it. Finally, the traffic was worse than Hannibal thought possible and so they were about two hours later than Hannibal had expected. It was getting late and he was still tired after the mission. He was not in the mood for this.

~Murdock's POV~

Murdock had been handcuffed and shoved into the back of a van for transport somewhere. He wasn't sure where he was going, but tried to memorize the trip as he went. He was scared of where they were taking him. It seemed like a long trip to him and he didn't speak once. The two people taking him didn't even try to make conversation with him, but were talking amongst themselves. He was beginning to tremble and didn't like it one bit.

After the long ride they stopped at a hospital. His eyes widened in horror when he recognized it. This was the first one he had been admitted to and he knew what happened here if you didn't follow their definition of 'behave'. He shuttered at the memory and tried to keep calm. The two people got out and lead him into the building and deposited him into the hands of the orderlies.

He was dragged into a room and they gave him a quick physical, but made sure to keep him restrained. After the doctor gave his a good to go signal they dragged into another room, ECT room. He stepped back fearfully, but that was taken as a sign of resistance and so they pushed to the table and forced him to lay down on it. They restrained him tightly and started the treatment. He was in agony the whole time. The psychologist in the room was talking about violent tendencies and how this was an effective treatment for bi-polar disorder. He didn't think being shocked repeated helped any and if anything it just stressed him out more. It felt like an eternity before it finally stopped and he was exhausted and in so much pain. The voltage must have been extremely high. They hauled him off the table and tried to get him to stand. His legs gave out though and he collapsed. They then began pushing and beating him to try to get him to stand up. He finally managed to get his legs to work so they would stop and they pushed him down into yet another room.

'Ut oh' his mind thought as he registered the last room. He was pushed into a padded room with a camera to monitor him and made sure he didn't try to pull any funny business on them. They strapped him into a straight jacket, and made it much tighter than it needed to be. It felt like they were trying to pull his arms out of his sockets and he cringed. Then he was shoved to the floor against the wall, and they pulled out a bunch of needles. He backed away a little when they came close earning him a hard slap and more yelling. He yelped, but held still as they injected him with the shots. The needle pricks were painful and they weren't trying to gentle with him for sure. When they were finished they finally left him alone and he let his head drop down. He was exhausted and his whole body was sore. The uncomfortable position made it impossible for him to get even slightly comfortable. The shots were starting to take effect and he could feel his head spinning. He laid back and just tried to breath deep.

He was still mad at BA, but not so much at Face. Face did say he was kidding and he was pretty sure he going to push the two people off of him if he wasn't so shocked. He did stand and move toward them after all. He wasn't planning on forgiving BA though. What he said went too far and until he made a formal apology he wasn't complying. At this point the pain in his head and body were becoming too much and he bowed his head and sat back beginning to lose consciousness.

~Everybody's POV~

Hannibal walked into the hospital with BA and Face shuffling behind. He was not in the mood to deal with any bullshit at the moment. The whole day was a disaster as far he was concerned and he had run out of patience.

Face was walking at a slower pace into the hospital. He wanted to see Murdock badly, to apologize to him, but at the same time he was afraid that Murdock would be extremely angry with him, and he had every right to be. So one desire pushed him forward and the other pulled him back. The internal struggle was a tough one and he tried to muster some of his courage in order to get through this without looking like a scared little kid or wounding his pride.

BA strode into the hospital not knowing really what to expect. He knew Murdock would be mad and he decided he would deal with that when the time came. What he really didn't like was the thought of being surrounded by a bunch of crazies. That thought scared him, because who knew what they were capable of. He would be sure to watch his back at all times.

Hannibal headed straight for the receptionists desk and told her "Hello. I'm Cornel Hannibal Smith. I've come to pick up Captain Murdock. We need him for an extremely important mission and he will be leaving with us, now." His mood was pretty bad and his voice reflected it. The receptionist eyes widened and she typed something on her computer screen.

"I'm sorry sir, but Captain Murdock is undergoing treatment and won't be released until he is deemed capable."

"I have this piece of paper right here that say you will release Murdock to me ASAP! We will be taking him with us, and I don't give a damn what the computer says!" Hannibal had lost his patience now. Face walked up, but backed up a bit. One of the orderlies also came to inspect the commotion.

"What would be the problem here?" the orderly asked in an annoyed tone.

Hannibal handed her the paper and said "I want Captain Murdock now, and this piece of paper releases him to me despite hospital orders!

BA and Face were standing behind him to back him up as the orderly read the paper. She grumbled under her breath and said "Well apparently we have no choice." in a nasty tone. "Release him. I'll get a wheelchair." That made the team all look at each alarmed and they waited for the orderly to come back.

"I'll need you to sign this Cornel, and I will also need to keep the paper." The receptionist handed Hannibal a clipboard and piece of paper, along with a pen. He signed and gave it back as the orderly walked around the corner. They then followed her as she pushed the empty wheelchair to their destination. They walked down a hallway with many rooms, but none of them had windows which set all their alarm bells ringing. They stopped at one of the doors and she pulled out a key and unlocked the door.

"Leave the door open on your way out. I have to go talk to my boss." she snarled at them and left in a huff.

Face cautiously pushed open the door and they all peeped inside. What they saw took their breath away. Murdock was strapped into a straightjacket and sitting on the floor leaning against the wall. He didn't seem to notice that the door opened at all and had his head down with his hair obscuring his face. It was hard to tell if he was okay so they all cautious stepped into the room and shut the door so that it was only open a crack. "Murdock." whispered face quietly and then he took a step forward. He received no answer and tried again but louder this time "Murdock." He received only silence so he turned to Hannibal. "What do we do?" he asked looking lost.

Murdock could hear voices around him waking him up. He faintly recognized them and listened harder. He could hear Face and Hannibal talking and picked him head up to try to look at them. The drugs however had taken effect and all he could see was blobs of color and tried guessing who was who. His vision was very fuzzy and his hearing wasn't up to one hundred percent either, but he was sure the figure standing closest to him was Hannibal and the one to the side of Hannibal was Face. He looked further and was sure that large blob was BA and remembered how mad he was at him. He really didn't want to see him right now.

"First we need to make sure he's okay. Then we go from there." Murdock's head picked up a bit. Hannibal then moved forward and stood just in front of Murdock examining him. Face soon followed and gently put his hand on his friend's back. He could feel the tension the jacket was creating and moved a his down slowly to undo the buckles. Murdock had moved his head up enough that they could see his face, and he looked exhausted, and he didn't seem to know what was going on. He had burns on his temples and Face knew exactly where they came from. He slowly and gently started unbuckling the jacket trying to cause as little pain as possible. He also noticed the injection marks on his friends neck. There were quite a few and it appeared some had bled a little. Also they were starting to bruise. Hannibal peeked over to see what he was looking and rose an eyebrow when he saw the marks. Face heard Murdock hiss as his arms were freed and he pulled the jacket off quickly. He then helped his friend put his arms down while whispering apologies into his ear the whole time and rubbing his back comfortingly. BA was finally starting to come closer.

"I'm still mad at you!" Murdock's head snapped up and he tried to glare at BA while backing up a bit. Hannibal gestured for BA to back up and he did.

"Okay Captain, it's alright. We've come to take you back with us, so relax." Hannibal spoke soothingly and reached out to give Murdock's shoulder a comforting squeeze. Face then put Murdock's arm around his shoulder and helped him to his feet. He swayed dangerously and reached around Face to lock his hands together leaning on Face heavily. Hannibal rushed over to support him.

Murdock's head felt even more dizzy and the colors were dancing around the room. Also, his limbs felt very weak and he knew he wouldn't be able to stand much longer even with support. "My head feels fuzzy." he commented in a slurred half out of it voice, and then leaned more onto Face when his head was hit with another dizzy wave.

Hannibal pulled the wheelchair closer and helped Face seat Murdock in it. He didn't protest and just let them handle him. When he was seated they pulled his feet up and put them on the foot rest, then they proceeded to put his hands in his lap. When they were sure he was secure and comfortable they began moving. "Just relax Captain." Hannibal told him as he pushed out to the van. His patience seemed to have return, but he still wanted to hurt everyone with a position of power in the building. He pushed him out to the van glaring at the doctors, nurses, psychologists, and orderlies as they walked by.

When they reached the van BA wordlessly climbed into the driver's seat. He was feeling really guilty now and knew he needed to have a long talk with Murdock when he was feeling up to it. That could be a while considering the state they found him in. He was very glad that at least now they would be able to take care of him and make sure he was relaxed though.

Face jumped in the left passengers door and moved over to the right to open the door and take Murdock. Hannibal was helping him out of the wheelchair and into the van. They put him in the seat and Face buckled his seatbelt. The orderly came out and took the wheelchair away from Hannibal wordlessly and left. Hannibal helped Face position their friend comfortably by moving his feet into the van onto the floor so that his legs wouldn't crap. When Hannibal believed Face had the situation under control he shut the door and hopped into the passenger's seat for the long ride home.

When the van started to pull out of the parking lot Face began looking through the bag of things he brought for Murdock. The baseball cap wouldn't do much good now, since his friend was basically passing out, presumably from the pills. He did find the pillow he brought though and positioned it so it was leaning on the window and then laid Murdock's head against it. Murdock whined when he accidently bumped one of the burns on his temples and Face apologized gently. He could feel how cold his friends skin was, and Murdock began to shiver. It may have been warm earlier, but now the temperature had dropped to nearly freezing and his t-shirt and shorts weren't likely to keep him very warm. Face rummaged through the bag searching for the blanket he brought and then pulled it out. He carefully tucked it around him and asked "Can you turn up the heat." BA looked back through his mirror and wordlessly cranked it up. He noticed the look in Murdock's eyes and knew he was too far gone to have any idea what was going on. Face saw that his friend was beginning to drool and grabbed a clean rag from the back to wipe it up. He watched him the rest of the ride back making sure he was warm enough and wiping up the drool from his mouth. Hannibal wrung his hands and looked down the whole ride, while BA had his eyes firmly fixed on the road. None of them spoke. They were all too upset and felt horrible.

When they arrived back at base BA pulled the van up to their tent. Hannibal and Face climbed out and gingerly helped support Murdock and carry him into the tent. It was dark and visibility was poor so they stumbled and tripped over a few things before successfully reaching Murdock's cot and laying him down carefully. They tucked him in and watched him for a few minutes. BA had gone to park the van and was now walking in through the tent entrance. They all looked at each other before going to their own beds and collapsing. Hannibal and BA soon fell asleep, but Face continued to watch over his friend feeling guilty. He felt like her could have prevented this if he had stepped up, but he didn't so he was just as much at fault as BA. He closed his eyes as the guilt consumed him drifting off into a not so peaceful sleep.

The next morning Face was the first one awake. He peered around the tent and saw that everyone else was asleep. He glanced at Murdock who hadn't moved all night. He then exited the tent and sat outside in a chair watching the sun rise. Hannibal joined him shortly after and asked "Hey, what's wrong kid."

Face signed and the Cornel put his hand on Face's shoulder. He was smoking his favorite brand of cigars. "I feel like I should have done something to prevent this Boss. I mean it's just as much my fault as BA's, so I deserve some of the blame."

Puffing on his cigar Hannibal stated "Ya, you do, but since you have remorse for it I think you deserve more credit than you give yourself. You did tell him you were joking, and seems to accept that."

"Thanks Boss. I still feel bad and I hope he accepts my apology." Face said softly.

"Don't worry kid. I'm sure he will." Hannibal took another puff on his cigar and Face stood smiling and got up to go for a walk. BA exited the tent and stretched into the morning sun. "BA we need to have a talk." Hannibal stated firmly leaving no room for argument.

BA sat down next to Hannibal in the chair Face had recently vacated and raised his hands. "I know what you gona say okay. I was wrong and I feel real guilty about it. When the fool wakes up I will talk to him about this and hopefully we can move on from here."

"Alright, but I'm not influencing Murdock's decision. If he doesn't want to forgive you I'm not going to argue with him." Hannibal was making it clear to BA that he was going to have to be sincere if this was going to pass.

"Understood." BA got up and walked toward the garage to finish fixing his van. Hannibal puffed on his cigar thinking he had a long day ahead of him.

When Murdock woke up it was around nine in the morning and Face was sitting next to his bed with breakfast, Tylenol, and a glass of water. He sat up carefully feeling his sore body protest and took the plate from Face giving him a small smile and thanking him. He ate quickly because he was starving. He had a headache and was guessing that that's what Face brought him the painkiller for. When he finished eating he took the pill and drank his water. Face helped him up the rest of the way and started rubbing his back to sooth out the tension from the night before. "Feeling better?" Face asked sincerely. His shoulders were still extremely sore and he kept rolling every time Face hit a particularly sore spot. He was feeling better though.

"Ya, I guess. My memory's still fuzzy, but I remember some things, and I feel like I fell off a building." His voice sounded tired and almost lifeless.

"Why don't get some more rest then." Face whispered tenderly. "When you feel up to it Hannibal has called a discussion about what happened, but not until you feel better. Maybe later today okay." Murdock nodded listening and leaned back allowing Face to help him lie down and get comfortable. "I'm really sorry and I should of helped you, but I didn't. I hope you can forgive me."

"I'm not mad at you okay. I know you feel bad." Murdock said softly and then gave Face a hug, which Face gladly returned.

When Murdock got back up latter he felt a bit better and more focused. He got ready for the day and ate a late lunch. Hannibal called their meeting into secession and they met inside their sleeping tent and were all located on their beds. Hannibal called the meeting to a start from his sitting position on his bed. "Alright, we seem to have some unresolved issues that need attention because they affecting our team and causing problems. So today we will discuss these issues and resolve them. Morrison's orders. I think we should start with what happened yesterday. BA, Murdock take it away." Hannibal gestured to them and BA went first.

"Look man I'm sorry. I didn't think you would be offended and I was wrong. I took it way too far and you don't deserve that. We cool?" BA looked a bit uncomfortable, but so far he was doing well.

"Ya, I just don't like being treated like a child. I may have problems, but I'm not stupid." Murdock looked around at everyone directing the statement to them.

"Alright, Captain, we will take that in regard and be much more considerate in the future. I don't like Face always nagging about my health and how cigars are bad. I know they are, but I like them and am going to keep smoking them." Hannibal voiced.

"But they are!" Face retaliated but noticed the glare he was getting from everyone else for not being corporative and backed off. "Okay I won't bother you about it anymore." He grumbled and surrendered. Hannibal got a cocky smile and looked at him. "I'm next then, okay. I hate it when BA gets grease all over my clothes! I mean really man." Face said looking at him.

"I'm sorry I thought it was my rag and it was getting dark." BA defended

"That was my good suit. I used that for my scams. How would you like it if I hurt your van so you couldn't do your job effectively." Face huffed from his corner sitting cross legged on the bed.

"You gona do what fool!" BA screamed jumping off his bed and the rest of them stared wide eyed.

"Face, BA calm down. BA just try not to cover Face's clothes with grease, and Face watch what you say about BA's van." Hannibal disciplined them both.

"Sorry." they both muttered.

"My turn now." BA said rubbing his hands. "Okay, I hate it when Murdock makes a mess of my van. It's mine! Mine! That means respect it, and keep it clean!" BA yelled over to Murdock who raised his hands up in defense.

"Okay, okay. Yours. Keep it clean. Got it." Murdock stated and it seemed to calm down BA.

"Hmm. I think we should have these chats more often boys. I think they are really effective." Hannibal said grinning and lighting another cigar.

"Your just happy you won." Face muttered sourly.

"Yep." Hannibal replied smoking his cigar. They all burst into laughter including Face, eventually.

Morrison stood not far away and was listening to the conversation going on. He smiled and said "I love it when a plan comes together." Then he went back to his tent smugly.

~Note~

So what do you think. It's just a one shot.


End file.
